Exporting a GPX file
How to export your Trailkeep trip as a device-ready GPX file, including Garmin compatibility details and what is included in the export.
Trailkeep generates a GPX file from your uploaded route and planned waypoints. The export is designed to work with navigation devices and apps out of the box — including Garmin handhelds, OsmAnd, and Gaia GPS.
What is included in the export
The exported GPX contains:
- The full uploaded GPX track, subsampled if necessary (see Garmin compatibility below)
- Each trip day exported as a separate
<trkseg>track segment — navigation apps like OsmAnd and Gaia GPS use this to show a day-by-day breakdown - All named waypoints with their coordinates
- Automatic name fallbacks for unnamed waypoints (see below)
- Off-route paths exactly as you drew them on the map
How to export
Export is available from two places:
1. Download icon in the trip control panel — visible in the GPX sub-group whenever a route is attached to the trip. Click it to download immediately.
2. "Edited GPX" button inside Route Preview — open the trip Summary map, then click the "Edited GPX" button at the bottom of the dialog.
GPX export requires a GPX route to be uploaded first. See Uploading a GPX file for how to attach a route to your trip.
Garmin compatibility
Garmin handheld devices silently truncate GPX files above 500 track points. Trailkeep automatically subsamples the exported track to stay within this limit, keeping the first and last points and distributing the rest evenly. Your route shape is preserved; only the point density changes.
Waypoint name fallbacks
If a waypoint has no name, Trailkeep generates a meaningful fallback in the export rather than leaving it blank:
| Waypoint type | Exported name example |
|---|---|
| Water source | "Day 1 Water" |
| Resupply point | "Day 2 Resupply" |
| Last waypoint of the day | "Day 3 Camp" |
| Other unnamed stop | "Day 1 · Stop 2" |
Elevation data
Elevation is preserved in the export if the original uploaded GPX file included <ele> tags. If the source file had no elevation data, the exported file will not have it either — Trailkeep does not generate elevation data from external sources.